About

Era: The Chosen - A Horror RPG: Defend our dimension!

$7,518

pledged of $2,000 goal

170

backers

At Shades of Vengeance, we believe that Tabletop Roleplaying Games can offer an experience that other types of games can't. We love creating games and have been working with our team for 2 years to bring you something really special...

With the help of experts on the system and the writers you'll recognise from our other games, plus the legendary talents of some industry greats, we've created a brand new game which you will love!

This is not only a detailed and immersive world, but includes mechanics which support the genre of the game, drawing the players into the chilling reality of the Lost Lands and the fight against the Anonassi.

Our world is not safe. It is besieged by creatures from another dimension...

We all know the feeling.

It’s the crawling sensation on the back of the neck, the insistent, niggling feeling that we’re being followed. It’s the feeling that there are eyes in the dark, watching. Waiting. In that moment, you know – just know – that there is a clawed hand reaching toward the back of your head.

Sometimes we stay still and try to ignore the feeling. Sometimes we whirl around, but there’s nothing there. Then we laugh, pass it off as imagination, and go on with our lives.

But… what if… what if there really was something there, but you just weren’t able to see it?

Or, worse... perhaps you’re one of the people who can see…

Our dimension of Aether, the bridge formed by the Lost Lands and the dying, dark dimension of Erebus.

In this game, you will take the role of one of the Chosen, the small number of individuals who can see the Anonassi and the paths into the "Lost Lands" where they amass their forces.

The Anonassi are terrifying in form. Emerging from their home dimension of pure darkness, they cross the bridge of the Lost Lands to enter our world...

The game's timeline spans over 100 years, from the first recorded encounter with the Anonassi and the start of the war to drive them back into their dimension, through the industrial revolution and the development of new technologies and on to the modern era, where the war heats up once again...

Different weapons and tactics are used by each side over the course of the war, giving a unique experience in each era.

Audio Stories!

We've been recording Audio Stories of Era: The Chosen, and you can check them out here:

The Era d10 ruleset is a lightweight and dynamic system which is designed to help the players experience everything from suspense-filled moments to epic combat against horrific creatures to detective work with equal ease. It's also designed to provide benefits to those who roleplay their characters well, promoting the core skills that are transferable between every game.

It will allow you to experience this universe in a way that is as smooth as possible without being unrepresentative - the focus is on you and your choices, but they have every possibility of failure, especially if you're not skilled in what you attempt.

By choosing your skills carefully, your character can focus on their Clan-given abilities or technology, dominate in any of five forms of combat, talk their way out of any situation or protect their teammates from harm.

Players roll a number of d10s, attempting to roll higher than a given Success Threshold. The more dice they roll above the Threshold, the more Successes they achieve.

The Threshold rises as the action becomes more difficult to accomplish and the number of dice increases as a player becomes more skilled. While one Success might achieve a positive result, the more Successes achieved, the better the outcome is for the player.

Of course, things can also go wrong - if you roll more 1s than Successes, you will Fumble. And of course, the harder an action is, the more likely it is you will Fumble!

"Creepy alien starfish... why did it have to be creepy alien starfish?" - Kevin Kutlesa

The number of dice is defined using an Attribute and Skill system, which each define their own areas of influence, you roll your dice depending on what you're attempting. Whether using Dexterity + Engineering for a precision piece of work, Intelligence + Engineering for a more theoretical problem or Luck + Engineering for a complete long shot, you'll have to adapt to your circumstances with the various combinations.

Although you roll more dice the more skilled you are, the number you are attempting to reach varies depending on the difficulty of the action - if you were shooting an enemy in clear conditions, the GM would probably ask for a 7 or better on each dice. If someone was laying a mine in an otherwise safe area, more likely a 4 or 5. Firing over your shoulder at someone 30 metres away, while crouching behind a low wall would definitely be a 10!

Please visit our YouTube Channel for some How-To videos:

Both feature significant explanation of the rules, as well as an example of how you would play the game!

And here's an Actual Play Session:

Please feel free to comment if you have any questions: we'll be happy to answer them.

D'Aoust - “They are dwarfed by what they have found, small men made big by picking the bones of what came before.”

The D’aoust Clan is primarily dedicated to the appropriation of objects of power from the Lost Lands – they see the neighbouring dimension as their personal gold mine and are loathe to share any of the profits of power that they may receive.

Garcia - “If you want peace, prepare for war.”

The Garcias are dedicated to taking the fight to the Anonassi and eliminating them whenever and wherever they encounter them. They sometimes take crazy risks, all in the name of eradicating the threat to Humanity. They are fearless warriors and believe that every denizen of Erebus must be destroyed or driven back for humanity to survive.

Rostov - "Knowledge is power. All the knowledge is all the power."

The Rostovs believe firmly that Humanity should be protected from the dangerous knowledge of the fight against the Anonassi and the Chosen. They have therefore worked for generations to keep the war between Aether and Erebus a secret, as well as providing superior tactical approaches to the Chosen on the battlefield.

Nakamura - "It is never wrong to risk your life to save another."

The Nakamura clan believe that it is their sacred duty to defend Humans everywhere from the dangers of Erebus. They begin training their Chosen at a very early age, instructing them in both the martial and moral aspects of the crusade against the Anonassi.

Chike - “Understanding is the key to survival, and not accepting preset biological limits is the key to victory.”

The Chike clan believes that research into the Anonassi, specifically their abilities and their biology is the key to defeating them in the end. They are not afraid of enhancing their soldiers to improve Humanity’s chances against the Anonassi, and have success in giving their troops the ability to change forms in battle!

As always, we've worked with many reporters in the RPG community to talk about Era: The Chosen! You can find a list of what we've done here:

Comments from Players

"Terrifying... and fantastic! I'd recommend it to anyone!"

"A great experience, I loved the way the mechanics supported my GM method, reinforcing the horror aspect of the game."

40% Writers and Artists
Every penny that isn't used for getting the rewards to you will be used for development of the Rulebook! This will include artwork, writing, layout, editing, proofreading... everything we need to get the books made, short of printing (see below!).

10% Kickstarter Fees
Kickstarter takes its usual 8-10% cut. We'll transfer anything that doesn't get taken for that straight into creation!

50% Printing and Shipping
Experience of over 30 Kickstarters has taught us that the majority of the costs relating to any Kickstarter are getting the rewards out to you guys, safely and in a timely manner. We've had a fair bit of experience now (we have actually run over 30 Kickstarters!), so we're confident we'll be able to fulfil in a way that will satisfy you.

Please note that we ship from the UK, but we pay all Customs Charges!

Risks and challenges

Shades of Vengeance has run over 30 crowdfunding campaigns on Kickstarter, and this is the 11th Roleplaying Game Rulebook we have produced.

While we haven't been mistake-free, we've always delivered on or ahead of time (except for two occasions, where a delay was agreed with Backers to give them more content!).

We use each successive Kickstarter to build on the lessons learned from the previous, and we learn fast. At this point, we're confident in our ability to deliver the rewards we're committing to and to keep you informed if there are any delays.

The biggest individual challenge for this Kickstarter is managing a team of artists and writers from all over the world. We all live in different timezones, so coordinating is a huge logistical challenge. Ed's a Project Manager by trade and has some experience in this area, however!

We're dedicated first and foremost to continuing delivering you the best material we can, and secondly to bring it to you on time. We hope you'll support our efforts to do that!

Please note that we print and ship from the UK, due to being based there, so prices are set accordingly!

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $45 or more
About $45

Slayer (Core Rulebook Paperback)

Get the Era: The Chosen Rulebook in Paperback!

Hold the fate of our dimension in your hands - literally - with this perfect bound book. Experience the battle for the Lost Lands in vibrant full colour and understand the challenges you may face in this war...